Catena Labs Raises $18M to Build First AI-Native Financial Institution
AI is rewriting the rules of finance, and Catena Labs is positioning itself at the heart of this transformation. The startup, co-founded by former Circle co-CEO Sean Neville, has secured $18 million in seed funding to create what it claims will be the first regulated, AI-native financial institution purpose-built for the agent economy.
Announced Tuesday (May 20), the funding round was led by a16z crypto, with backing from major players including Breyer Capital, Circle Ventures, Coinbase Ventures, and CoinFund. A diverse group of angel investors also participated, ranging from NFL superstar Tom Brady to Twitch co-founder Kevin Lin and former IBM CEO Sam Palmisano.
A New Kind of Financial Platform
At the center of Catena’s mission is a bold idea: AI agents—autonomous software systems capable of transacting, making decisions, and interacting with humans—will soon dominate the digital economy. But today’s financial institutions aren’t designed to accommodate them.
Catena aims to change that by launching a financial system that understands and serves the workflows, identities, and decision-making logic of AI agents. Unlike legacy banks, which were built around human behavior and manual processes, Catena’s infrastructure is optimized for machine-speed interactions.
AI agents need a financial layer built for their autonomy, and that’s what Catena promises to deliver.
Also read: Maxiom Wealth Integrates AI into Investment Strategy
Bridging Legacy Systems and Future Commerce
Catena isn’t planning to leave existing payment networks behind. The company is developing bridges to traditional rails, but sees the long-term need for new financial infrastructure that can keep up with the rapid pace of AI-driven transactions.
Its newly launched Agent Commerce Kit offers an open-source toolbox for developers building agent-powered applications. The kit includes protocols for identity verification, autonomous payments, transaction receipts, and human oversight, helping businesses plug into the agent economy faster.
The company also plans to offer regulated financial services with stablecoin-backed rails that provide instant settlement and low fees, while embedding safeguards for fraud prevention and compliance.
The Agent Economy Is Coming
Catena’s leadership team, which includes CTO and co-founder Matt Venables, sees AI agents not just as an extension of automation—but as new economic actors. These agents could book services, buy digital goods, or even manage financial portfolios autonomously.
By building the necessary rails now, Catena hopes to become the trusted backbone for future commerce where AI entities interact fluidly with human users, systems, and institutions.
As Chris Dixon of a16z crypto put it, the rise of AI agents is “reshaping what’s possible in online commerce.” Catena is betting big that the financial world won’t just adapt to AI—it will need to be rebuilt around it.
